Arianna Mellinger

Arianna works for a local mental health authority, providing substance use counseling services in rural East Texas. She has both indirect and direct experiences with the criminal judicial system, having witnessed her parents' separate incarcerations and later encountering the system herself. Arianna graduated from Houston Community College with a certification as a Chemical Dependency Counselor. Previously, she provided peer support services for The Mobile Crisis Outreach Team (MCOT) in Houston. She leverages her lived experience to connect with youth and adults facing barriers like mental health challenges and chemical dependency. Arianna holds certifications as a Justice-Involved Peer Support Specialist, Recovery Peer Support Specialist, and LCDC-CI. She is also a JustLeadershipUSA Leading with Conviction™ (LwC) graduate.